Heart patients more likely to die during major cardiology conferences
Heart patients hospitalized during a major cardiology conference may face an increased risk of death, according to new data out of Australia. The study, published in Internal Medicine Journal, was based on nearly two decades of data.[1]
The study focused on nearly 25,000 acute myocardial infarction (AMI) patients from Australia admitted from 2003 to 2021. Patients admitted during the Cardiac Society of Australia and New Zealand (CSANZ) annual meeting were compared to patients admitted on identical days of the week up to four weeks before or after the conference. Researchers ensured patients in the conference and nonconference groups had comparable demographics. The mean patient age was 72.4 years old for both groups, for example, and approximately 65% were men.
Overall, the 30-day mortality rate for patients admitted during a CSANZ conference was 11.3%. The 30-day mortality rate for patients admitted when there was no CSANZ conference, on the other hand, was 9.7%. Six-month mortality was comparable for these two groups.
“These are observational data that do not prove a causal relationship between the CSANZ Annual Scientific Meeting and mortality after AMI, and we can only speculate on the possible reasons for the association,” wrote first author Timothy Nathan Kwan, MD, a researcher with The University of Sydney, and colleagues. “Potential mechanisms such as delay in coronary angiogram, lower prescription of prognostic therapy or misdiagnosis cannot be demonstrated from our data. Nevertheless, the findings do cause some concern that the decreased staffing during the CSANZ Annual Scientific Meeting may delay some critical treatments or that the absence of leaders in cardiology may reduce the application of optimal evidence-based management strategies. We do believe that increased attention on staffing during meetings is warranted.”
The group emphasized that these findings may not apply to other parts of the world or other meetings. They also noted that they were unable to determine how the COVID-19 pandemic impact this trend.
“Importantly, the potential benefits of scientific meetings, such as education, research and consequent long-term improvements in patient outcomes, are outside the scope of this study,” they added. “Nevertheless, we believe this study does motivate further research and emphasizes the importance of providing high-quality care while many staff are away.”
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Reviewing similar studies from the United States
The study’s authors did highlight two American studies exploring this same concept.[2, 3] Those two trials told a different story, with mortality rates actually dropping during large cardiology conferences. One theory is that this finding was partly due to the fact that care was delayed during those conferences, so patients did not undergo treatment until the conference was over. Another possibility mentioned in those studies is that less experienced cardiologists at teaching hospitals may have had more responsibilities with other clinicians attending the conference.
Michael has more than 19 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.